I was commissioned by penguin creative head, Ahlawat Gunjan for a Book cover Design. He came to NID for the presentation of his works at Penguin.
Title: Black Soil, Author: Ponneelan (translated by J. Priyadarshini)
Page Extent: 368pp (approx.), Format: Demy, Pub Month: December 2022 Category: Fiction / Translation, E-book Rights: Y, Territory / Rights: World, Price: 599, Cover Budget: Standard.
About the Book:
Karisal is the black soil region of Tamil Nadu where the river Tamirabarani flows. This novel details the lives of the impoverished farmers and tenants who live in the village, where their life is controlled by the whims and fancies of their landlord. It describes their way of life, the nature of oppression
faced by them in the years after independence. It also sheds light on age-old practices such as minor boys being married off to older women who then become their father-in-law’s consorts. It is an appalling practice but it was socially accepted as it had been the norm for generations. While being focused upon how the farmers come together to fight for justice, it also marks a shift in social customs such women become a strong voice in this struggle and reject traditional practices where they are seen as pawns. It is an assertion of identities by those groups of people who have been oppressed by the upper caste landlords. The story is told through the perspective of the schoolteacher who has been posted to the area — Kannappan. He is more of an observer who by the virtue of being an “outsider” to the local community is able to talk about practices or share gossip
without judgement, at first. Slowly, as he gets involved in the locals’ activities, he straddles the local and an outsider’s point of view, thereby giving the reader an insight on the prevailing harsh socio-economic conditions. Along with the stories of the farmers and the women of the region the novel describes the landscape of the region, its trees, plants, crops and flowers, its erratic seasons and the life, love, rituals and celebrations that are closely linked with its landscape.
faced by them in the years after independence. It also sheds light on age-old practices such as minor boys being married off to older women who then become their father-in-law’s consorts. It is an appalling practice but it was socially accepted as it had been the norm for generations. While being focused upon how the farmers come together to fight for justice, it also marks a shift in social customs such women become a strong voice in this struggle and reject traditional practices where they are seen as pawns. It is an assertion of identities by those groups of people who have been oppressed by the upper caste landlords. The story is told through the perspective of the schoolteacher who has been posted to the area — Kannappan. He is more of an observer who by the virtue of being an “outsider” to the local community is able to talk about practices or share gossip
without judgement, at first. Slowly, as he gets involved in the locals’ activities, he straddles the local and an outsider’s point of view, thereby giving the reader an insight on the prevailing harsh socio-economic conditions. Along with the stories of the farmers and the women of the region the novel describes the landscape of the region, its trees, plants, crops and flowers, its erratic seasons and the life, love, rituals and celebrations that are closely linked with its landscape.
Front Cover Suggestion:
The book emphasizes the significance of soil and land as its core theme. To capture this essence visually, the envisioned cover design adopts an earthy and dark aesthetic. The proposed approach involves an all-black cover with bold text, complemented by a textured background reminiscent of soil.
Here are a few examples that have similar visual language.
The requirement was to illustrate a footprint for the cover design. Instead of illustrating it, I took the simplest approach: I dipped my foot in ink and took an impression on white paper. Later, I digitized it using Illustrator.
Yeah, I've left my footprint on this book cover. Literally!
However, the proposed design went through some more changes and finally the below design was approved by the client.
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